Volkswagen's Ducati-powered XL1 is headed for production

A Ducati-powered XL1 and other topics with VW's Heinz-Jakob Neusser.

Production of the Ducati-powered XL1 is moving forward

Volkswagen is going to build the XL1. Dr. Heinz-Jakob Neusser, Volkswagen's Head of Powertrain Development, says the bosses have made up their minds.

"Clearly, when Dr. Piëch is mentioning it, you can take it as real," Neusser said when asked about the Ducati-powered XL1 announced by Ferdinand Piëch late last year. "We are doing this car. We haven't made a production decision that's clear, but you can see in the near future a prototype."

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The car will likely be powered by the 1.2-liter V-twin from the Ducati 1199 Panigale. The XL1 weighs a scant 1700 lbs, but that could be greatly reduced if the electric motor and batteries were to be left at the factory. The Ducati mill produces 195 hp, which is 121 hp up on the 235 mpg XL1's diesel hybrid drivetrain. The additional power will require wider front and rear wheels, which in turn will require a more robust suspension system. This will also give it a wider, lower stance than its Hybrid counterpart.

Like the car it's based on, the Ducati-powered XL1 will be a halo car intended to sell in very small numbers. Volkswagen is only building 250 XL1s, and we would expect far fewer Ducati-powered versions to roll off the assembly line.

Volkswagen wants to see the technology from the XL1 trickle down

"This car has all the technology of the highest super-sports cars," Neusser said. It's a halo product that was never meant to sell in large numbers, but Volkswagen wants to see the technology pioneered in the XL1 propagate across the range. He went on to point out that the XL1's drivetrain has already made it to production in Europe with the Twin Up.

The MQB platform is the future of Volkswagen

Volkswagen's incredibly versatile MQB platform already underpins the Polo, Golf, Jetta, and Passat. Next up is the recently announced midsize SUV for the North American market, and things will only expand from there. Crucially, MQB is also able to accommodate everything in VW's current drivetrain portfolio, including gasoline, diesel, compressed natural gas, hybrid, and full electric propulsion.

VW is working hard on a better battery

"We have actually 25 ampere-hours cells inside," Neusser said. "In about two years, we will see nearly double of this energy density, which means approximately 37 to 40 ampere-hours. We are actually working in our research labs on batteries with approximately 80 ampere-hours. Then, we will have nearly three or four times the capacity in the same volume of the same battery, which we have now."

The new midsize SUV will have a diesel engine option

The recently announced midsize SUV for the North American market will receive the full complement of VW powertrains, including a diesel engine. Despite the United States' hesitance to adopt diesel engines, VW sees them as being very complementary to American driving habits.